ABSTRACT
Introduction In this book, the intricate relation between public administration and technology is analysed and reflected upon. In Chapter 2, characteristics of contemporary information and communication technologies were presented, and their uses in organizational and democratic practices were discussed. There are, however, numerous authors who argue that the impact and significance of ICTs stretches far beyond the limited scope of public administration and public policy. They claim that ICTs are relevant for changes occurring in the fabric of our society or, in other words, at a macro level. In other words, we are either entering a new era which is called the Information Age (Castells, 1996, 2000), or our society develops into an Information Society or e-society (Lips, 2005; Webster, 2002). Both connotations recognize fundamental differences from respectively previous eras and previous social structure.
